Sort this out, God, please

Celebrate God all day, every day. I mean, revel in him! Make it as clear as you can to all you meet that you’re on their side, working with them and not against them. Help them see that the Master is about to arrive. He could show up any minute! Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life. (Philippians 4:4-7)

Celebrate God all day, every day! That isn't a suggestion - it is more than just 'good advice' - it is a life-sustaining, life-altering directive. Revel in HIM. Why? God knows your concerns. He knows when your sense of wholeness has been disturbed, leaving you wondering what will happen next. Good things happen to bad people - leaving us wondering why that is. Bad things happen to good people - leaving us wondering how they 'deserved' whatever it is that happened. Life is more than a series of good or bad things - especially when we actually take time each day to truly 'celebrate' God in our midst. A sense of wholeness is what may keep us 'steady' in the midst of all those 'life events' - the wholeness God gives as we revel in his presence, strength, goodness, and protection.

Instead of worrying over life's events, pray over them. Will you always find immediate 'peace' and 'clear direction'? Not always - but that sense of unease can become what we lean into, finding we actually avoided something we didn't see coming just because we paid attention to that unrest inside. Worrying doesn't fix anything. Some will say that prayers don't either, but I know God wants us to unburden our hearts to him, trusting him to do the rest that we don't see, know, or understand. How do I know that? I have lived it! God actually wants to know our concerns - to hear our heart's desires, listen to our cries for help, and rejoice in our praise. When we hold them back, believing he doesn't care, or isn't listening, we are no longer giving him honor.

Everything coming together for good doesn't always mean things will 'sort themselves out' as we wanted them to be sorted. Sometimes the end is much, much different than we imagined, but if we have trusted God with the 'end', it will be something that actually brings blessing into our lives. When we struggle with life's decisions, there is no better thing to do than just take them to him, celebrate his presence, and then wait for him to sort them all out. Just sayin!